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Saturday, February 23. 2008
Back In Touch
Wow … it’s been a month and a half — longer — since my last post! Jeez … thought I’d have my trusty Mac back online a month ago but it was not to be. Well now we’re back online!
Let’s see … when last seen; Senator Hillary Clinton was the under-challenged, pre-emptive nominee for the Democratic Party. Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney would be duking it out for the Republican nomination and John McCain was all but out of the race.
Today: Barack Obama is the Democratic frontrunner — running pretty strong too. Clinton is hanging on for dear life, having under-planned her campaign bid. Of course, until a month ago, she was hailed as the one who would be heading the Democratic ticket and any planning for a serious challenge — from any candidate — didn’t seem necessary. But, Obama and the Internets woke up the nation and the Clinton crowd in particular.
Bill Clinton got nasty on Barack in South Carolina and that plan backfired. Obama won handily, and he’s won ten straight primaries and caucuses. But, national polls still have New York’s junior senator ahead by 7% and she leads the polls in Ohio and Texas … but if Texas is like several other states in this primary season, the young people coming out to vote for the senator from Illinois (Obama) may tip that state towards Obama and if that happens, Senator Clinton is basically out of the race. Bill Clinton said as much a couple days ago.
Mayor Rudy, quite to the astonishment of everyone in the political business, put all his eggs into the Florida basket, figuring if he won the Florida primary he’d be president.
Really? How effin stupid is that! That’s funnier than when I quit a job because I was certain I’d win the lottery.
Okay, I was young (and stupid) and really toasted on a variety of chemicals, can’t really remember the entire list of illegal pharmaceuticals, so my judgment was … err … suspect …
And there are more than a few pundits (and others) who were certain beyond any reasonable doubt Mayor Rudy was the smartest candidate with the best judgment to be president of the United States.
Really? Okay … I was certain Randy Brewer would be an all-star center in the NBA when he was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks all those years ago. (It was the chemicals again)
And Governor Mitt and his five sons who are/were serving their nation in ways other than the military by working on his presidential campaign —what an insult to everyone who wears or has worn the uniform — he spent more than a million dollars per delegate for the meager showing he had in the Republican primaries. Remember in December, January even, he was the strongest candidate in the field and pundits were talking about how the general election would roll with Senator Clinton duking it out with Governor Mitt Romney, the flip-flop man.
Of course, the pundits are blaming the pollsters for not getting all the polls right, especially the exit polls … yeah, blame the pollsters. I saw … can’t remember the celebrity … anyway, the famous guy went after pollster Frank Luntz on Real Time with Bill Maher for getting it wrong. Luntz of course had the right comeback, but the influence of the pundits was evident. Pundits usually only give us the “sexy” numbers from the polls, which was Luntz’s rebuttal.
So, now it looks like it will be Senator Obama against Senator McCain come the fall, barring any wholesale reversal in the remaining Democratic primaries (Mike Huckabee, the candidate who believes the mythology of Genesis is true, is statistically eliminated from the Republican primaries) or a wholesale defection from the voters by the Democratic super delegates. That scenario has pretty much been put to rest — at least the pundits aren’t talking about it anymore.
Until all the unnamed sources in the New York Times story about Senator McCain’s alleged campaign trail romantic affair have their claims undeniably verified, I’ll not comment, other than to say the story has one on-the-record source. But as the campaign rolls on, more will be revealed.
On the other hand, I could care less if a candidate cheats on his or her spouse, unless of course the politico rages against such things.
But those aren’t even the important issues in my world …
You know you’re fucking old when young women offer you a seat on the bus. C’mon! Appeal to my vanity! Just smile and if you must say anything, tell me I have sexy legs! My Trusty Trek is always on the bus’s bike rack which means I’m either wearing shorts or my pant legs are rolled up! Old guys are vain too, you know!
Anyway, I declined both gracious offers … yeah, it’s happened twice now. Maybe it’s time for the Grecian Formula or maybe shave off the old goatee, which is now way past being salt and peppah. What I need is some young hottie — Roxanne, Nikki, Lindsay, Mel, Dani — throw me a bone(r) here, appeal to my vanity — please! (sigh) …
Twenty-plus years ago I decided it would be good to live to my current age and longer. At one time (many years ago) it seemed like a good idea were I to die at the same age as Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison and the ultimate of the died-too-young dead heroes, Ron “Pigpen” McKernan. No pun intended.
Just for those who don’t know, Pigpen McKernan was the lead singer and keyboardist for the Grateful Dead. Great voice, okay chops on the Hammond.
All died from drug and/or alcohol related causes. At the age of 27. So, from about the age of 24, that seemed like the thing to do for a legacy.
Oh yeah, Pigpen is the ultimate hero because he didn’t die from an overdose like the other three, he succumbed to cirrhosis of the liver! Now that takes some hard living!
Imagine my disappointment when, on my 28th birthday, I woke up. Or came to … hard to determine which. At any rate, my 28th birthday was the saddest day of my life. No coincidence that in my 29th year a lot of personal changes took place.
Can’t decide if this is sad, or funny and sad, but it wasn’t until many — many — years later I realized there was a flaw in that ill-fated legacy: all four of those individuals, Jimi, Janis, Jim and Pigpen, all had achieved artistic and popular success before they departed this Mortal Coil, leaving more substantial legacies. I, on the other hand, was just wasted all the time and had I died at the age of 27 would have been relegated to the dustbin of the forgotten.
We still talk about Hendrix in particular and Morrison has something akin to a religious cult following, Deadheads still debate who has been the best Grateful Dead keyboardist and the ones who consider themselves “true” Deadheads always pick Pigpen (I say Vince Welnick or Brent Mydland) and Janis, no one has forgotten Janis …
Well, family never forgets their loved ones, but they never remember with anything like fond memories the ones who die young. At best, revisiting our dearly departed ends with a melancholy tear.
So, here I am in 2008, glad to have lived to see a woman and an African American seriously vying for the presidency — finally — and I’m still a part of the political process. In the voting booth and here on this blog. I’ll vote for either. Both Clinton and Obama have evolved into strong, confident candidates and that’s what Democrats need in the fall. Their often times contentious primary campaign has toughened both and that bodes well for the general election. Damn! Obama is one hell of an orator and Clinton ain’t half bad either.
Okay, I endorsed Dennis Kucinich, but I was okay with just about any of the Democratic candidates.
Yeah, I’m okay today. Got back online, got some nice messages from my online friends; it’s a nice day, despite the daylong deluge of rain. It’s been raining a lot in Sandy Eggo lately. But that’s okay!
Not really ... I don’t enjoy being wet in cold weather ...
Let’s see … when last seen; Senator Hillary Clinton was the under-challenged, pre-emptive nominee for the Democratic Party. Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney would be duking it out for the Republican nomination and John McCain was all but out of the race.Today: Barack Obama is the Democratic frontrunner — running pretty strong too. Clinton is hanging on for dear life, having under-planned her campaign bid. Of course, until a month ago, she was hailed as the one who would be heading the Democratic ticket and any planning for a serious challenge — from any candidate — didn’t seem necessary. But, Obama and the Internets woke up the nation and the Clinton crowd in particular.
Bill Clinton got nasty on Barack in South Carolina and that plan backfired. Obama won handily, and he’s won ten straight primaries and caucuses. But, national polls still have New York’s junior senator ahead by 7% and she leads the polls in Ohio and Texas … but if Texas is like several other states in this primary season, the young people coming out to vote for the senator from Illinois (Obama) may tip that state towards Obama and if that happens, Senator Clinton is basically out of the race. Bill Clinton said as much a couple days ago.
Mayor Rudy, quite to the astonishment of everyone in the political business, put all his eggs into the Florida basket, figuring if he won the Florida primary he’d be president.
Really? How effin stupid is that! That’s funnier than when I quit a job because I was certain I’d win the lottery.
Okay, I was young (and stupid) and really toasted on a variety of chemicals, can’t really remember the entire list of illegal pharmaceuticals, so my judgment was … err … suspect …
And there are more than a few pundits (and others) who were certain beyond any reasonable doubt Mayor Rudy was the smartest candidate with the best judgment to be president of the United States. Really? Okay … I was certain Randy Brewer would be an all-star center in the NBA when he was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks all those years ago. (It was the chemicals again)
And Governor Mitt and his five sons who are/were serving their nation in ways other than the military by working on his presidential campaign —what an insult to everyone who wears or has worn the uniform — he spent more than a million dollars per delegate for the meager showing he had in the Republican primaries. Remember in December, January even, he was the strongest candidate in the field and pundits were talking about how the general election would roll with Senator Clinton duking it out with Governor Mitt Romney, the flip-flop man.
Of course, the pundits are blaming the pollsters for not getting all the polls right, especially the exit polls … yeah, blame the pollsters. I saw … can’t remember the celebrity … anyway, the famous guy went after pollster Frank Luntz on Real Time with Bill Maher for getting it wrong. Luntz of course had the right comeback, but the influence of the pundits was evident. Pundits usually only give us the “sexy” numbers from the polls, which was Luntz’s rebuttal.
So, now it looks like it will be Senator Obama against Senator McCain come the fall, barring any wholesale reversal in the remaining Democratic primaries (Mike Huckabee, the candidate who believes the mythology of Genesis is true, is statistically eliminated from the Republican primaries) or a wholesale defection from the voters by the Democratic super delegates. That scenario has pretty much been put to rest — at least the pundits aren’t talking about it anymore. Until all the unnamed sources in the New York Times story about Senator McCain’s alleged campaign trail romantic affair have their claims undeniably verified, I’ll not comment, other than to say the story has one on-the-record source. But as the campaign rolls on, more will be revealed.
On the other hand, I could care less if a candidate cheats on his or her spouse, unless of course the politico rages against such things.
But those aren’t even the important issues in my world …
You know you’re fucking old when young women offer you a seat on the bus. C’mon! Appeal to my vanity! Just smile and if you must say anything, tell me I have sexy legs! My Trusty Trek is always on the bus’s bike rack which means I’m either wearing shorts or my pant legs are rolled up! Old guys are vain too, you know!Anyway, I declined both gracious offers … yeah, it’s happened twice now. Maybe it’s time for the Grecian Formula or maybe shave off the old goatee, which is now way past being salt and peppah. What I need is some young hottie — Roxanne, Nikki, Lindsay, Mel, Dani — throw me a bone(r) here, appeal to my vanity — please! (sigh) …
Twenty-plus years ago I decided it would be good to live to my current age and longer. At one time (many years ago) it seemed like a good idea were I to die at the same age as Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison and the ultimate of the died-too-young dead heroes, Ron “Pigpen” McKernan. No pun intended.
Just for those who don’t know, Pigpen McKernan was the lead singer and keyboardist for the Grateful Dead. Great voice, okay chops on the Hammond.
All died from drug and/or alcohol related causes. At the age of 27. So, from about the age of 24, that seemed like the thing to do for a legacy. Oh yeah, Pigpen is the ultimate hero because he didn’t die from an overdose like the other three, he succumbed to cirrhosis of the liver! Now that takes some hard living!
Imagine my disappointment when, on my 28th birthday, I woke up. Or came to … hard to determine which. At any rate, my 28th birthday was the saddest day of my life. No coincidence that in my 29th year a lot of personal changes took place.
Can’t decide if this is sad, or funny and sad, but it wasn’t until many — many — years later I realized there was a flaw in that ill-fated legacy: all four of those individuals, Jimi, Janis, Jim and Pigpen, all had achieved artistic and popular success before they departed this Mortal Coil, leaving more substantial legacies. I, on the other hand, was just wasted all the time and had I died at the age of 27 would have been relegated to the dustbin of the forgotten.
We still talk about Hendrix in particular and Morrison has something akin to a religious cult following, Deadheads still debate who has been the best Grateful Dead keyboardist and the ones who consider themselves “true” Deadheads always pick Pigpen (I say Vince Welnick or Brent Mydland) and Janis, no one has forgotten Janis …
Well, family never forgets their loved ones, but they never remember with anything like fond memories the ones who die young. At best, revisiting our dearly departed ends with a melancholy tear.
So, here I am in 2008, glad to have lived to see a woman and an African American seriously vying for the presidency — finally — and I’m still a part of the political process. In the voting booth and here on this blog. I’ll vote for either. Both Clinton and Obama have evolved into strong, confident candidates and that’s what Democrats need in the fall. Their often times contentious primary campaign has toughened both and that bodes well for the general election. Damn! Obama is one hell of an orator and Clinton ain’t half bad either. Okay, I endorsed Dennis Kucinich, but I was okay with just about any of the Democratic candidates.
Yeah, I’m okay today. Got back online, got some nice messages from my online friends; it’s a nice day, despite the daylong deluge of rain. It’s been raining a lot in Sandy Eggo lately. But that’s okay!
Not really ... I don’t enjoy being wet in cold weather ...
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